Introduction

All aboard - the charming characters and the stories of adolescence they weave within Sohgeisha Clear Novels' light-novel series “RAIL WARS! - Japanese National Railways Public Safety Squad” finally turns into anime!

Story

Naoto Takayama, a high school student that dreams of becoming a driver now that he got his dream job with the national railroad, was placed in his on-the-job training into Tokyo Central Railway Public Safety Bureau's Fourth Patrol Brigade, known as Patrol Four.
With the other members, such as Aoi Sakurai who is a strong-minded woman with superior shooting and combat skills, Haruka Koumi who is a girl with photographic memory born into a high-class family, and Shou Iwaizumi who is a passionate muscle-brain, the cases that Naoto faces after somehow becoming the acting brigade chief range from finding lost children to dismantling bombs!?
Can the four from Patrol Four solve the many incidents that happen one after another?
All aboard, the adolescence railroad action woven by four high school students is about to depart!

Characters

Aspiring a job associated with trains that he's always loved, he seeks employment with the national railroad in hopes of becoming a driver and then set for life.
But, during his student OJT (an internship system while still in school) puts him in the railroad public safety division instead of the driver division.
He has no particular skills that stand out, and tries to get past his internship without any hitches, but he gets tossed around every which way by the members of Patrol Four (the Tokyo Central Railway Public Safety Bureau's Fourth Patrol Brigade) and becomes involved in various incidents.

A huge hater of men, she has a very extreme and spirited personality that boasts, “Anyone who molests people on trains should be shot and killed right there!”
Anytime an incident happens, she pokes her head in faster than anyone else, and is often the troublemaker for Patrol Four.
An exceeding lover of guns due to the effects of having a police officer as a father, and her shooting skills as well as her martial arts skills are top-notch.

A beautiful and intelligent girl born in a high-class family who is very mild-mannered.
She doesn't have any motor skills nor stamina, so she tends to drag the Patrol Four team down, but she is a genius of memorization and can even memorize the entire train schedule of Tokyo station.
Her grandfather apparently was on the board of directors for the national railroad, but it is a mystery as to why she chose the public safety division.

A typical muscle-brain that trumps everyone at physical tests, but is terrible at any written exams.
His trademark attire, despite not being official uniform, is the knife-proof vest and special billy club.
He may be a simple man, but is very reliable once an incident happens, as he will risk his life to face the criminals head-first.

Naoto's classmate and second year student at Kiryu Railroad High School.
What you would call a lover of railroad sounds, she travels all over the country for the sounds of various trains.
Good friends with Naoto through their love of trains, and understand each other very well.
She desires to be assigned to dining car attendants for her student OJT.

We're giving away this gorgeous Kotobukiya figure of Yaya!― Today is the day that FUNimation Entertainment releases Unbreakable Machine-Doll (BD/DVD Combo) in regular and limited editions. To celebrate, FUNimation has decided to let ANN give away this beautiful Kotobukiya figure of Yaya from Unbreakable Machine-Doll (a $99 value). You may have seen Unbreakable Machine-Doll, but both of these comple...

Hope counts down the best moments where Yoko Kanno brought her A-game to Cowboy Bebop. Plus: your poll results, and vote for your favorite Bebop episodes!― 3 2 1, Let's Jam! It's time for a Cowboy Bebop themed episode of The Set List. This week, I've ranked my Top 10 Musical Moments from the legendary jazz-and-blues inspired anime, and you can check them out in the video below! (Please note that we...

PONYCAN USA launched a few months back with two shows: Denki-Gai and Yuki Yuna is a Hero. Executive Director Kazuyoshi Fukuba answers a few questions about what to expect, and what's up with those prices.― PONYCAN USA is the newly-minted US distribution arm of Pony Canyon, which has been in the Japanese media business since 1966. PONYCAN USA follows the example set by Aniplex of America, in that th...

Shinichiro Watanabe's zany sci-fi showcase for his artist pals winds up on bluray today, loaded with special features in a limited edition with a hefty price tag. Mike Toole investigates.― Space Dandy is a series full of magic-- a magic that first reveals itself late in episode 1, during a sequence in which the show's titular hero and his new pal, Meow, are forced to run away from a pack of jumbo-si...

Find out if you won!― Thank you (again) for entering our contest (again). Winners: Patrick Nakasone, Honolulu, Hi Hiddi Jordan, Bailey, Mi Saul Diaz, Arleta, Ca Watch for our next give-away coming SOON! In the meantime, head over to SpaceDandy.com to find out more about FUNimation's awesome Space Dandy sets.

This little-seen family adventure about a group of tanuki living in Kyoto has careful writing and beautiful scenery; Nick Creamer thinks it might just be a modern classic.― In the guidebook accompanying Eccentric Family, series composer Shotaro Suga speaks frankly of the difficulty of condensing an entire book into an anime, and the question of where to even begin telling the story. “There are just ...

Every good fantasy series has a few incredible elf ladies on display. Today, Lynzee decides to finally share the elf.― The term "bombshell" was coined, very appropriately, during World War II to refer to the likes of Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell, and other sex symbols of the era. There aren't any elves in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, but there are plenty of wild, voluptuous fantasy women wielding swor...

Deadman Wonderland is a dark, unsettling look into a private prison abusing the system for the whims of the Warden and a few governmental higher ups.― Ever since 1864, a “wonderland” has been a world where the rules of logic do not apply, a carnival that can be by turns fun and frightening. Deadman Wonderland has been playing with that definition since its first volume, and now in its seventh we beg...